Eternal Undying Chronicles

Chapter 4 New Life

The ceiling looked bright; it was obvious that he had slept in, and it was already midday. Could anyone blame him after the crazy events of his first day in this city? He wasn't in the mood to leave his bed. Stretching his arms, he felt something in the sheets with him.

"Huh, did I leave something in the bed?"

He decided to lift the sheets. As he did, he was a bit startled.

"This... it's the sword that wolf monster stabbed me with. What's it doing here?"

A sudden unease gripped him. 'Did she follow me here? I suspected they could track me down, but I had nowhere else to go, and I didn't think I'd be found so quickly.'

Still caught up in this train of thought, he paused.

"No, I got it wrong. If they had found me, why only leave a sword? Did I accidentally bring it without noticing? Yeah, that must be what happened."

He picked up the sword, its long blade and entire body now black with red highlights on the edges. It was a beautiful weapon; he couldn't help but stare. It looked smaller than he remembered.

He felt a small urge to keep it but decided against the idea. He got out of bed and leaned the sword against the wall.

Entering the bathroom, he glanced at himself in the mirror and almost yelped. He was covered in dried blood from head to toe; his clothes were torn in various places, with the most noticeable tear on the left side—it looked as though it had been sliced clean through. Yet, his body was unharmed.

He trembled a bit, the memory of the sword slicing through his shoulder and chest flashing through his mind. Taking off his clothes and deciding they were beyond saving, he threw them in the garbage. But first, he needed a bath.

He turned on the shower; the water was warm as he stepped in. A few minutes later, he was all clean. Grabbing a towel, he dried himself off and returned to the mirror to brush his teeth. He stopped, taking a closer look at his reflection—his face was different. The usual blemishes and scars that had been a part of him were gone.

"My scar... it's gone. Not even a trace. How?"

The small scar he had on his forehead, which was barely visible before, had vanished completely. Was it just him, or was he a little taller and more attractive than he remembered? He had always been an average-looking guy, but he used to give himself a confidence boost by convincing himself he was quite handsome whenever he stood by the mirror. Maybe this was just one of those moments.

He shrugged it off and left the bathroom.

"I won't."

"You will."

"Nuh-uh."

"Yes, you will," she said, turning her back to him. "Because you have nowhere else to be but by my side." Her words sounded ominous, but he didn't care.

Once he was certain she had left, he finally slumped down on the couch and breathed a sigh of relief. An hour passed, and he finally relaxed. Picking up the sword, he opened the window and tossed it out. There was no way he was keeping that cursed thing in his house, no matter how cool it looked.

Returning to the couch, he picked up a controller and started his game. Looking at the controller, he muttered, "Alright, let's grind, baby."

He played until first light before finally closing his eyes on the couch to sleep. What felt like an instant later, there was a knock on his door. Groggily, he got up to open it, finding a middle-aged man in a black suit standing outside, someone he didn't recognize.

"Hello, we have not met. I am Albert Fairman, the landlord. I am here to deliver this," the man said, handing him an envelope.

He accepted it and attempted to close the door, still groggy. However, the landlord, Albert, stopped him.

"You might want to read it, kid."

Feeling slightly annoyed, he opened the envelope and read its contents. As he did, the drowsiness was immediately knocked out of him by the shock of what he was reading.

"Eviction notice? You've got to be kidding, right? And today, no less! You can't do that; the law says you can't evict a tenant without a six-month notice," he glared at the landlord.

"Sorry, kid. If you don't like it, you can sue me. But I want you out by tomorrow, or I'll have you kicked out by the end of the day. Oh, and here's a full refund of your yearly rent. I am paying you back five times more for the inconvenience," Albert said, handing him a different envelope that felt a bit heavy.

Albert left, and as soon as he did, he picked up his phone and called home to tell his parents. His dad threatened to sue, but his mom eventually calmed him down, saying it wasn't worth the trouble. They agreed it would be better for him to stay at a hotel for a while before finding new accommodations.

After thirty minutes on the phone with his parents, he finally got some shut-eye, drifting into sleep as he cursed his misfortune.